Wedsday I have to fly to Portland OR. I have trouble with panic attacks when I am in a croud. Any sugestions on how to deal with this. I have not got any choice but to go . It is an inportant family matter.

I've had this type of problem my whole life, one thing I've done recently is imagining a friend, a new close friend I trust very much putting his hand on my shoulder and telling me "you're strong Mike, everything is fine, and no one know's how you're feeling" I've found it to be a great grounding technique.

Like ArronB: I cope better with crowds and the stress of airports by taking a few Valiums. One an hour before I reach the Airport and one when I get seated on the Airplane. I mostly Fly long 8-10 hours transatlantic flights between Europe and US, and I dread it every time. Over the years I have almost overcome my my social phobias.On thing that can help is to carry a MP3 player with your favorite music it you noises and loud announcement from loudspeakers makes you even more jumpy. For me it creates my own little bubble and space. Airports does have some triggers: the partly undressing ...taking of coat, belt, and shoes .... and perhaps even risking a body screening. But the more often I fly the better I cope with the stressors of crowds and airports. I usually am tired afterwards since I have been more high strung than usual, but the Valiums sure helps.

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